Powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake rocks the Philippines, death toll hits 69, Cebu badly hit

A magnitude 6.9 earthquake rocked a central Philippine province late on Tuesday, Sep. 30.

I can't imagine feeling this!

More CCTV from Cebu as the M6.9 earthquake hit 👀 pic.twitter.com/AvxL9le6nI

— Volcaholic 🌋 (@volcaholic1) September 30, 2025

At least 69 people have been killed, according to Reuters on Oct. 1 at about 3pm.

This was based on data from the Cebu provincial disaster office and was subject to validation.

An estimated 150 people were injured.

What caused quake

The shallow quake struck off the coast just before 10pm.

The epicentre of the earthquake was about 19km northeast of Bogo, a coastal city of about 90,000 people in the north of Cebu province.

The quake was set off by a movement in a local fault at a depth of 5km.

The death toll is expected to rise.

Cebu remains accessible

Cebu is one of the Philippines' most popular tourist destinations.

It is home to 3.4 million people.

Mactan-Cebu International Airport, the country's second busiest gateway, remained operational, despite the damage.

Killed while sleeping

In Bogo, a cluster of shanties in a mountain village was hit by a landslide and boulders, South China Morning Post reported.

At least 12 residents died when they were hit by falling ceilings and walls of their houses, some while sleeping.

The deceased mostly belonged to small families.

In San Remigio town, also near Bogo, five people were killed.

Three of them were coastguard personnel, and the two others were a firefighter and a child.

They were killed separately by collapsing walls while trying to flee from a basketball game when the quake struck.

Tsunami warning

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology briefly issued a tsunami warning and advised people to stay away from the coastlines in Cebu and in the nearby provinces of Leyte and Biliran, due to possible waves of up to 1m.

The Philippines is one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries.

It is often hit by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, an arc of seismic faults around the ocean.

Top photos via @volcaholic1 X & @mnlstandardph X